Tips for Spring Cleaning With Your Roommates

Spring is the perfect time to clean because the weather is finally warm enough to open the windows, letting in fresh air. Start the new season with a sparkling apartment by enlisting your roommates to help with spring cleaning. Of course, you may feel overwhelmed trying to tackle an entire apartment, but with these tips you’ll be done in no time:

Identify Things That Need Cleaning

Sit down with your roommates and list all the things you’d like to clean this season. Try to focus on washing items that don’t get cleaned every week, such as the oven, microwave and ceiling fans.

Make sure each of you submits tasks for the list in order to get everyone involved. Here are some things you should think about cleaning:

Closets: Each person should be responsible for his or her own closet. Remove all your clothing and sort it. Items that you haven’t worn in a year can be donated and place seasonal pieces in a storage bin. This will leave space for the clothes you’ll wear this spring and summer.

Windows: Because it’s warm enough to open your windows, go ahead and do so. Wash both the inside and outside of the windows using a glass cleaner. [Window Cleaning Tips]

Oven: Clean the oven with ease by sprinkling baking soda in the bottom and on the grates. Then use a spray bottle to squirt water all over. You can leave the oven sitting in baking soda for several hours; then return to dampen it again. Do this several times before bed, and wipe it clean in the morning.

Fridge: Remove all expired foods and wash the inside of the fridge. You may want all the roommates present for this portion of spring cleaning, since you don’t want to throw out someone else’s food. [How to Organize a Refrigerator]

Divvy up the tasks you brainstormed between all of you. Try having each person pick one task and keep going around the circle until everything’s been claimed. This is a fair way to ensure no one has more to do than anyone else. Have each person write their initials next to the tasks they’ve been assigned. Once the cleaning is complete, they can cross off the item.

Celebrate a Job Well Done

Once everyone in your apartment has completed their spring cleaning tasks, take a moment to congratulate yourselves. You can go out for drinks, have a roommate dinner or enjoy a movie night!

Consider using the celebration as an incentive to meet your deadline. For example, if you all finish in three days, then you’ll get a big meal at a nice restaurant. If it takes a week, settle for ordering pizza.

[Image Source: Flickr – Sumeet Jain]

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